Russia, Iran lay down gauntlet following Trump strike in Syria

(NationalSentinel) War: Many geopolitical analysts wondered how Russia and Iran would respond to President Donald J. Trump’s decision to strike the Syrian government following yet another poison gas attack that left nearly 100 noncombatants, many of the children, dead last week.

As for the Trump administration, analysts believe that the president’s decision to strike hard following the sarin gas attack makes clear the U.S. will no longer tolerate them, leaving Iran and Russia with a choice: Bolster Assad’s conventional defenses to include ground forces mobilized by Iran using militiamen from Iraq, Afghanistan and Lebanon, or seek a diplomatic solution.

The answer appears to be the former – Moscow and Tehran will double down on their support for Assad. As reported by Zero Hedge:

A statement issued on Sunday by a joint command centre consisting of forces of Russian, Iran and allied militia alliance supporting Syrian President Bashar al Assad said that Friday’s US strike on the Syrian air base crossed “red lines” and it would “respond with force” to any new aggression while increasing their level of support to their ally.

In the statement published by the group on media outlet Ilam al Harbi, the pro-Assad alliances says that “what America waged in an aggression on Syria is a crossing of red lines. From now on we will respond with force to any aggressor or any breach of red lines from whoever it is and America knows our ability to respond well.”

That we could inch closer toward World War III over a rump state – Syria, for little of it remains – is surreal, and certainly not a scenario Cold Warriors could have imagined two decades ago following the collapse of the Soviet Union.

And yet, he we are at the precipice of global conflict once more, only this time there are nuclear weapons to be concerned about.